MUA Members Encouraged To Vote YES to AOS and OSM Enterprise Agreements

Posted by Mich-Elle Myers on December 23, 2016

Members working for AOS and OSM please read this important information from Deputy National Secretary Will Tracey

AOS AGREEMENT

As you are now aware 2 days ago AOS sent out the new Enterprise Agreement (EA) for you to look at before the voting period opens at the end of next week. The EA they have sent you reflects the “Job Security” agreement standard that we have developed for the industry in an era where our jobs in this industry have been under sustained attack for 5 years now. An attack so pervasive and relentless which has been co-ordinated by the Australian Mines and Metals Association (AMMA) and assisted by a Federal Government that has attacked blue collar jobs in many industries including the offshore.

Unfortunately some offshore employers have jumped on the bandwagon and put out non-union agreements on behalf of AMMA that sought to undermine:

The hard fought gains we made in the High Court case in August of this year

Our job security provisions we have been pursuing relentlessly in these EBA’s; and

The rates and conditions in the offshore industry by trying to endorse a race to the bottom mentality where the wages and conditions of Australian seafarers are slashed and traded off as employers cut costs to win contracts.

We have now met with over two thirds of the AOS membership through meetings on vessels, in the various Branch offices and at AOS itself. In these meetings we have sought to explain clearly the new EA and importantly why we have arrived at the position we have on this agreement. Every meeting has unanimously endorsed the new EA.

We have also run Branch meetings across every MUA Branch in the country and myself and Christy Cain are now doing a third round of meetings to inform our members on the full status of the offshore EA and the long and complex campaign to secure our right to work in our industry. All of these meetings have unanimously endorsed the MUA “Job Security” EA that you are about to vote on and that Programmed MUA members also recently voted on and endorsed. The Programmed EA was approved by Fair Work last week.

The AOS agreement you are about to vote on has also been endorsed unanimously by the MUA National Council and the MUA National Executive in the last 2 months.

This agreement you are voting on next week is another critical step in our campaign to secure the offshore industry for MUA members for generations to come. And we urge every one of you to vote and to vote Yes to this agreement when the voting opens at the end of next week.

This “Job Security” agreement from AOS backs in our recent historic win in the High Court and our long running campaign to support our right to work in our industry. A campaign led by Branch and National officials and offshore delegates and supported 100% by our Rank and File.

The MUA leadership across the country at both the Branch and National level recommend in the strongest possible terms that every MUA member votes YES to support this agreement and our campaign to secure our jobs in this industry.

All members must vote early when it opens and must vote YES if we are to continue this campaign for your jobs.

If anyone has any questions at all please email either myself or Danny Cain at any time over the Christmas break leading into New Year.

Again – support your Union to support you by voting YES for this agreement when the vote opens next week.

IN Unity on behalf of all MUA Officials and Delegates

Will Tracey

Deputy National Secretary

OSM AGREEMENT

As you are now aware in the last day or so OSM sent out the new Enterprise Agreement (EA) for you to look at before the voting period opens at the end of next week. The EA they have sent you reflects the “Job Security” agreement standard that we have developed for the industry in an era where our jobs in this industry have been under sustained attack for 5 years now. An attack so pervasive and relentless which has been co-ordinated by the Australian Mines and Metals Association (AMMA) and assisted by a Federal Government that has attacked blue collar jobs in many industries including the offshore.

Unfortunately some offshore employers have jumped on the bandwagon and put out non-union agreements on behalf of AMMA that sought to undermine:

The hard fought gains we made in the High Court case in August of this year

Our job security provisions we have been pursuing relentlessly in these EBA’s; and

The rates and conditions in the offshore industry by trying to endorse a race to the bottom mentality where the wages and conditions of Australian seafarers are slashed and traded off as employers cut costs to win contracts.

We have now met with over 90% of the OSM membership through meetings on vessels during crew changes in the last month or so. In these meetings we have sought to explain clearly the new EA and importantly why we have arrived at the position we have on this agreement. Every meeting has unanimously endorsed the new EA.

We have also run Branch meetings across every MUA Branch in the country and myself and Christy Cain are now doing a third round of meetings to inform our members on the full status of the offshore EA and the long and complex campaign to secure our right to work in our industry. All of these meetings have unanimously endorsed the MUA “Job Security” EA that you are about to vote on and that Programmed MUA members also recently voted on and endorsed. The Programmed EA was approved by Fair Work last week.

The OSM agreement you are about to vote on has also been endorsed unanimously by the MUA National Council and the MUA National Executive in the last 2 months.

This agreement you are voting on next week is another critical step in our campaign to secure the offshore industry for MUA members for generations to come. And we urge every one of you to vote and to vote Yes to this agreement when the voting opens at the end of next week.

This “Job Security” agreement from OSM backs in our recent historic win in the High Court and our long running campaign to support our right to work in our industry. A campaign led by Branch and National officials and offshore delegates and supported 100% by our Rank and File.

The MUA leadership across the country at both the Branch and National level recommend in the strongest possible terms that every MUA member votes YES to support this agreement and our campaign to secure our jobs in this industry.

All members must vote early when it opens and must vote YES if we are to continue this campaign for your jobs.

If anyone has any questions at all please email either myself or George Gakis at any time over the Christmas break leading into New Year.

Again – support your Union to support you by voting YES for this agreement when the vote opens next week.